Earliest evidence The earliest tentative evidence for iron-making is a small number of iron fragments with the appropriate amounts of carbon admixture found in the Proto-Hittite layers at
Kaman-Kalehöyük in modern-day
Turkey, dated to 2200–2000 BC. Akanuma (2008) concludes that "The combination of carbon dating, archaeological context, and
archaeometallurgical examination indicates that it is likely that the use of ironware made of steel had already begun in the third millennium BC in Central Anatolia." Souckova-Siegolová (2001) shows that iron implements were made in Central Anatolia in very limited quantities about 1800 BC and were in general use by elites, though not by commoners, during the Neo-Hittite Empire (). Similarly, recent archaeological remains of iron-working in the
Ganges Valley in India have been dated tentatively to 1800 BC. Tewari (2003) concludes that "knowledge of iron smelting and manufacturing of iron artifacts was well known in the Eastern Vindhyas and iron had been in use in the Central Ganga Plain, at least from the early second millennium BC". However, some recent studies date the inception of iron metallurgy in Africa between 3000 and 2500 BC, with evidence existing for early iron metallurgy in parts of Nigeria,
Cameroon, and Central Africa, from as early as around 2000 BC. The Nok culture of Nigeria may have practiced iron smelting from as early as 1000 BC, while the nearby Djenné-Djenno culture of the
Niger Valley in Mali shows evidence of iron production from c. 250 BC. Iron technology across much of sub-Saharan Africa has an African origin dating to before 2000 BC. These findings confirm the independent invention of iron smelting in sub-Saharan Africa.
Beginning (German:
Krieger von Hirschlanden), a
statue of a nude
ithyphallic warrior made of
sandstone, the oldest known Iron Age life-size anthropomorphic statue north of the
Alps. Although
meteoric iron has been used for millennia in many regions, the beginning of the Iron Age is defined locally around the world by archaeological convention when the production of smelted
iron (especially
steel tools and weapons) replaces their
bronze equivalents in common use. Modern archaeological evidence identifies the start of large-scale global iron production about 1200 BC, marking the end of the
Bronze Age. The Iron Age in Europe is often considered as a part of the
Bronze Age collapse in the
ancient Near East.
Anthony Snodgrass suggests that a shortage of tin and trade disruptions in the Mediterranean about 1300 BC forced
metalworkers to seek an alternative to bronze. Many bronze implements were recycled into weapons during that time, and more widespread use of iron resulted in improved steel-making technology and lower costs. When tin became readily available again, iron was cheaper, stronger and lighter, and forged iron implements superseded cast bronze tools permanently. In
Central and Western Europe, the Iron Age lasted from to , beginning in
pre-Roman Iron Age Northern Europe in , and reaching
Northern Scandinavian Europe about . The Iron Age in the
ancient Near East is considered to last from (the
Bronze Age collapse) to (or
539 BC), roughly the beginning of
historiography with
Herodotus, marking the end of the
proto-historical period. In
China, because writing was developed first, there is no recognizable prehistoric period characterized by ironworking, and the
Bronze Age China transitions almost directly into the
Qin dynasty of imperial China.
"Iron Age" in the context of China is used sometimes for the transitional period of to 100 BC during which ferrous metallurgy was present even if not dominant. ImageSize = width:800 height:200 PlotArea = width:700 height:160 left:100 bottom:20 AlignBars = justify Colors = id:time value:rgb(0.7,0.7,1) # id:period value:rgb(1,0.7,0.5) # id:age value:rgb(0.95,0.85,0.5) # id:era value:rgb(1,0.85,0.5) # id:eon value:rgb(1,0.12,1) # id:iron value:rgb(1,0.4,0.4) # id:filler value:gray(0.8) # background bar id:black value:black Period = from:-1401 till:1400 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:500 start:-1200 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:100 start:-1200 PlotData = align:center textcolor:black fontsize:8 mark:(line,black) width:15 shift:(0,-5) bar:Ancient Near East color:iron from: -1200 till: -1000 text:IA1 from: -1000 till: -550 text:IA2 from:-550 till:-550 shift:(40,-4) text:
Achaemenids bar:Aegean color:iron from: -1100 till: -800 text:
Greek Dark Ages from: -800 till: -480 text:
Archaic period from:-480 till:-480 shift:(45,-4) text:
Classical Greece bar:Central Europe color:iron from: -800 till: -450 text:
Hallstatt from: -450 till: 0 text:
La Tène from: 0 till: 0 shift:(45,-4) text:
Roman Empire bar:Egypt color:iron from: -1070 till: -664 text:
Third Intermediate Period from:-664 till:-664 shift:(40,-4) text:
Late Period bar:Italy color:iron from: -900 till: -700 text:
Villanovan from: -700 till: -265 text:
Etruscan from:-265 till:-265 shift:(45,-4) text:
Roman Italy bar:Northern Europe color:iron from: -500 till: 0 text:
Pre-Roman from: 0 till: 400 text:
Roman from: 400 till: 790 text:
Germanic from:790 till:790 shift:(40,-4) text:
Viking Age bar:India:iron from: -1200 till: -650 text:
PGW from: -650 till: -200 text:
NBPW from: -200 till: -200 shift:(45,-4) text:
Maurya Empire Ancient Near East The Iron Age in the
ancient Near East is believed to have begun after the discovery of iron smelting and smithing techniques in Anatolia, the
Caucasus or
Southeast Europe . In Iran, the earliest actual iron artifacts were unknown until the 9th century BC. For Iran, the best studied archaeological site during this time period is
Teppe Hasanlu.
West Asia In the
Mesopotamian states of
Sumer,
Akkad and
Assyria, the initial use of iron dates to perhaps 3000 BC. One of the earliest smelted iron artifacts known is a dagger with an iron blade found in a
Hattic tomb in
Anatolia, dating from 2500 BC. The widespread use of iron weapons which replaced bronze weapons rapidly disseminated throughout the
Near East by the beginning of the 1st millennium BC. The development of iron smelting was once attributed to the
Hittites of Anatolia during the Late Bronze Age. As part of the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age, the
Bronze Age collapse saw the slow, comparatively continuous spread of iron-working technology in the region. It was long believed that the success of the Hittite Empire during the Late Bronze Age had been based on the advantages entailed by the "monopoly" on ironworking at the time. Accordingly, the invading
Sea Peoples would have been responsible for spreading the knowledge through that region. The idea of such a "Hittite monopoly" has been examined more thoroughly and no longer represents a scholarly consensus. ImageSize = width:800 height:50 PlotArea = width:720 height:25 left:65 bottom:20 AlignBars = justify Colors = id:time value:rgb(0.7,0.7,1) # id:period value:rgb(1,0.7,0.5) # id:age value:rgb(0.95,0.85,0.5) # id:era value:rgb(1,0.85,0.5) # id:eon value:rgb(1,0.85,0.7) # id:filler value:gray(0.8) # background bar id:black value:black Period = from:-1300 till:500 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:500 start:-1300 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:100 start:-1300 PlotData = align:center textcolor:black fontsize:8 mark:(line,black) width:15 shift:(0,-5) bar:NEast color:age from: -1300 till: -600 shift:(0,5) text:
Ancient Near East from: -1300 till: -1000 text:Iron Age I from: -1292 till: -1070 shift:(0,5) text:
Ramesside Egypt from: -1000 till: -600 text:Iron Age II bar:NEast color:filler from: -600 till: -300 text:
Achaemenid from: -300 till: -50 text:
Seleucid Empire from: -50 till: 224 text:
Parthian Empire from: 224 till: 500 text:
Sassanid Empire Dates are approximate • Prehistoric (or
proto-historic) Iron Age Historic Iron Age
Egypt In the
Black Pyramid of Abusir, dating before 2000 BC,
Gaston Maspero found some pieces of iron. In the funeral text of
Pepi I, the metal is mentioned.
Europe , Dorset, England. More than 2,000 Iron Age
hillforts are known in Britain. In Europe, the Iron Age is the last stage of
prehistoric Europe and the first of the
protohistoric periods, which initially means descriptions of a particular area by Greek and Roman writers. For much of Europe, the period came to an abrupt local end after conquest by the Romans, though ironworking remained the dominant technology until recent times. Elsewhere it may last until the early centuries AD, and either Christianization or a new conquest during the
Migration Period.
Iron working was introduced to Europe during the late 11th century BC, probably from the
Caucasus, and slowly spread northwards and westwards over the succeeding 500 years. The Iron Age did not start when iron first appeared in Europe but it began to replace bronze in the preparation of tools and weapons. It did not happen at the same time throughout Europe; local cultural developments played a role in the transition to the Iron Age. For example, the Iron Age of
Prehistoric Ireland begins about 500 BC (when the Greek Iron Age had already ended) and finishes about 400 AD. The widespread use of the technology of iron was implemented in Europe simultaneously with Asia. The prehistoric Iron Age in Central Europe is divided into two periods based on the
Hallstatt culture (early Iron Age) and
La Tène (late Iron Age) cultures. Material cultures of Hallstatt and La Tène consist of 4 phases (A, B, C, D). The Iron Age in Europe is characterized by an elaboration of designs of weapons, implements, and utensils.
Citânia de Briteiros, located in
Guimarães, Portugal, is one of the examples of archaeological sites of the Iron Age. This settlement (fortified villages) covered an area of , and served as a Celtiberian stronghold against Roman invasions. It dates more than 2500 years back. The site was researched by Francisco Martins Sarmento starting from 1874. A number of
amphoras (containers usually for wine or olive oil), coins, fragments of pottery, weapons, pieces of jewelry, as well as ruins of a bath and its () revealed here.
Asia Central Asia The Iron Age began in
Central Asia with the
Saka, an
Eastern Iranian people who lived in present-day
Xinjiang, between the 10th and the 7th centuries BC, attested at sites like the cemetery at Chawuhukou. The
Pazyryk culture is an Iron Age
archaeological culture () identified by excavated artifacts and mummified humans found in the Siberian
permafrost in the
Altai Mountains.
East Asia ImageSize = width:800 height:80 PlotArea = width:720 height:55 left:65 bottom:20 AlignBars = justify Colors = id:time value:rgb(0.7,0.7,1) # id:period value:rgb(1,0.7,0.5) # id:age value:rgb(0.95,0.85,0.5) # id:era value:rgb(1,0.85,0.5) # id:eon value:rgb(1,0.85,0.7) # id:filler value:gray(0.8) # background bar id:black value:black Period = from:-800 till:500 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:500 start:-800 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:100 start:-800 PlotData = align:center textcolor:black fontsize:8 mark:(line,black) width:15 shift:(0,-5) bar:China color:era from: -771 till: -465 text:
Spring and Autumn from: -465 till: -221 text:
Warring States from: -771 till: -221 shift:(0,5) text:
Iron Age China from: -221 till: 500 shift:(0,4) text:
Imperial China bar:China color:filler from: -221 till: 500 shift:(0,-7) text:
(Early period) bar: Japan color:age from: -300 till: 300 text:
Yayoi from: 300 till: 500 text:
Kofun bar: Korea color:era from: -500 till: -108 text:
Late Gojoseon bar:Korea color:filler from: -108 till: -18 shift:(0,4) text:
Proto–Kingdoms from: -18 till: 500 text:
Three Kingdoms Dates are approximate • Prehistoric (or proto-historic) Iron Age Historic Iron Age In China,
Chinese bronze inscriptions are found around 1200 BC, preceding the development of iron metallurgy, which was known by the 9th century BC. Iron metallurgy reached the
Yangtze valley in the late 6th century BC. The few objects were found at
Changsha and
Nanjing. The mortuary evidence suggests that the initial use of iron in
Lingnan belongs to the mid-to-late
Warring States period (from ). Important non-precious husi style metal finds include iron tools found at the tomb at Guwei-cun of the 4th century BC. The techniques used in Lingnan are a combination of bivalve moulds of distinct southern tradition and the incorporation of piece mould technology from the
Zhongyuan. The products of the combination of these two periods are bells, vessels, weapons and ornaments, and the sophisticated cast. An Iron Age culture of the
Tibetan Plateau has been associated tentatively with the
Zhangzhung culture described by early Tibetan writings. In Japan, iron items, such as tools, weapons, and decorative objects, are postulated to have entered Japan during the late
Yayoi period () or the succeeding
Kofun period (538 AD), most likely from the Korean Peninsula and China. Distinguishing characteristics of the Yayoi period include the appearance of new pottery styles and the start of intensive rice agriculture in paddy fields. Yayoi culture flourished in a geographic area from southern
Kyūshū to northern
Honshū. The Kofun and the subsequent
Asuka periods are sometimes referred to collectively as the
Yamato period; The word is Japanese for the type of
burial mounds dating from that era. chest and neck armour from the
National Museum of Korea in
Seoul (3rd century AD) Iron objects were introduced to the
Korean peninsula through trade with chiefdoms and state-level societies bordering the
Yellow Sea during the 4th century BC, at the end of the
Warring States period, but before the beginning of the
Western Han dynasty. Yoon proposes that iron was first introduced to chiefdoms located along North Korean river valleys that flow into the Yellow Sea such as the Cheongcheon and Taedong Rivers. Iron production quickly followed during the 2nd century BC, and iron implements came to be used by farmers by the 1st century in southern Korea. Iron ingots were an important mortuary item and indicated the wealth or prestige of the deceased during this period.
South Asia ImageSize = width:900 height:125 PlotArea = width:800 height:80 left:65 bottom:20 AlignBars = justify Colors = id:time value:rgb(0.7,0.7,1) # id:period value:rgb(1,0.7,0.5) # id:age value:rgb(0.95,0.85,0.5) # id:era value:rgb(1,0.85,0.5) # id:eon value:rgb(1,0.85,0.7) # id:filler value:gray(0.8) # background bar id:black value:black Period = from:-1800 till:-200 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:500 start:-1800 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:100 start:-1800 PlotData = align:center textcolor:black fontsize:8 mark:(line,black) width:15 shift:(0,-5) bar:India color:era from: -1800 till: -200 text:
Iron Age in India bar:Period color:era from: -1800 till: -300 text:
Janapada bar:Period color:filler from: -700 till: -300 text:
Mahajanapadas bar:
Magadha color:era from: -1700 till: -832 text:
Brihadratha bar:
Magadha color:era from: -832 till: -667 text:
Pradyota bar:
Magadha color:filler from: -667 till: -413 text:
Haryanka bar:
Magadha color:filler from: -413 till: -345 text:
Shaishunaga bar:
Magadha color:filler from: -345 till: -321 shift:(0,4) text:
Nanda bar:
Magadha color:filler from: -321 till: -200 text:
Maurya Dates are approximate • Prehistoric (or proto-historic) Iron Age Historic Iron Age The early evidence of
iron smelting predates the emergence of the Iron Age proper by several centuries. Iron was being used in
Mundigak to manufacture some The
history of metallurgy in the Indian subcontinent began prior to the 3rd millennium BC. Archaeological sites in India, such as Malhar, Dadupur, Raja Nala Ka Tila, Lahuradewa,
Kosambi and
Jhusi,
Allahabad in present-day
Uttar Pradesh show iron implements in the period 1800–1200 BC. Archaeological excavations in Hyderabad show an Iron Age burial site. However, reviewing the claims of early uses of iron during c. 1800–1000 BC, archaeologist
Suraj Bhan noted, "the stratigraphical context and chronology of iron is not beyond doubt" at these sites (namely Malhar, Dadupur, and Lahuradeva) — although "there is no doubt" that iron was being used in the Ganges Plains "a few centuries before the rise of urbanization [...] around 600 BC". The beginning of the 1st millennium BC saw extensive developments in iron metallurgy in India. Technological advancement and mastery of iron metallurgy were achieved during this period of peaceful settlements. One ironworking centre in
East India has been dated to the 1st millennium BC. In
Southern India (present-day
Mysore) iron appeared as early as 12th to 11th centuries BC; these developments were too early for any significant close contact with the northwest of the country. and the Indian
Mauryan period saw advances in metallurgy. As early as 300 BC, certainly by 200 AD, high-quality steel was produced in southern India, by what would later be called the
crucible technique. In this system, high-purity wrought iron, charcoal, and glass were mixed in a crucible and heated until the iron melted and absorbed the carbon. The protohistoric Early Iron Age in Sri Lanka lasted from 1000 BC to 600 BC.
Radiocarbon dating evidence has been collected from
Anuradhapura and Aligala shelter in
Sigiriya. The Anuradhapura settlement is recorded to extend by 800 BC and grew to by 700–600 BC to become a town. The skeletal remains of an Early Iron Age chief were excavated in Anaikoddai,
Jaffna. The name "Ko Veta" is engraved in
Brahmi script on a
seal buried with the skeleton and is assigned by the excavators to the 3rd century BC. Ko, meaning "King" in Tamil, is comparable to such names as Ko Atan and Ko Putivira occurring in contemporary
Brahmi inscriptions in south India. It is also speculated that Early Iron Age sites may exist in
Kandarodai, Matota,
Pilapitiya and
Tissamaharama.
Southeast Asia ImageSize = width:800 height:80 PlotArea = width:720 height:55 left:65 bottom:20 AlignBars = justify Colors = id:time value:rgb(0.7,0.7,1) # id:period value:rgb(1,0.7,0.5) # id:age value:rgb(0.95,0.85,0.5) # id:era value:rgb(1,0.85,0.5) # id:eon value:rgb(1,0.85,0.7) # id:filler value:gray(0.8) # background bar id:black value:black Period = from:-800 till:500 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:500 start:-800 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:100 start:-800 PlotData = align:center textcolor:black fontsize:8 mark:(line,black) width:15 shift:(0,-5) bar:Vietnam color:era from: -771 till: -221 shift:(0,5) text:
Sa Huỳnh culture from: -221 till: 500 shift:(0,4) text:
Óc Eo culture bar:Vietnam color:filler from: -221 till: 500 shift:(0,-7) text:
Imperial Vietnam bar: Philippines color:era from: -771 till: -221 shift:(0,5) text:
Sa Huyun culture from: -500 till: -108 text:
Ifugao society bar:Philippines color:filler from: -108 till: -18 shift:(0,5) text:
Ancient Barangay's from: -18 till: 500 text:
Archaic epoch bar: Indonesia color:era from: -500 till: -108 text:
Prehistory of Indonesia bar:Indonesia color:filler from: -108 till: -18 shift:(0,4) text:
Buni culture from: -18 till: 500 text:
Early Kingdoms Dates are approximate • Prehistoric (or proto-historic) Iron Age Historic Iron Age , Philippines Archaeology in Thailand at sites Ban Don Ta Phet and Khao Sam Kaeo yielding metallic, stone, and glass artifacts stylistically associated with the Indian subcontinent suggest Indianization of Southeast Asia beginning between the 4th and 2nd centuries BC during the late Iron Age. In
Philippines and
Vietnam, the
Sa Huynh culture showed evidence of an extensive trade network. Sa Huynh beads were made from glass, carnelian, agate, olivine, zircon, gold and garnet; most of these materials were not local to the region and were most likely imported. Han-dynasty-style bronze mirrors were also found in Sa Huynh sites. Conversely, Sa Huynh produced ear ornaments have been found in archaeological sites in Central Thailand, as well as the
Orchid Island.
Africa Early evidence for iron technology in Sub-Saharan Africa can be found at sites such as
KM2 and KM3 in northwest
Tanzania and parts of Nigeria and the Central African Republic.
Nubia was one of the relatively few places in Africa to have a sustained Bronze Age along with
Egypt and much of the rest of
North Africa.
Archaeometallurgy originated in numerous centers of Africa; the centers of origin were located in
West Africa,
Central Africa, and
East Africa; consequently, as these origin centers are located within inner Africa, these archaeometallurgical developments are thus native African technologies. Iron metallurgical development occurred 2631–2458 BC at Lejja, in Nigeria, 2136–1921 BC at Obui, in Central Africa Republic, 1895–1370 BC at Tchire Ouma 147, in Niger, and 1297–1051 BC at Dekpassanware, in Togo.
Nubia was a major manufacturer and exporter of iron after the expulsion of the
Nubian dynasty from Egypt by the
Assyrians in the 7th century BC. Though there is some uncertainty, some archaeologists believe that iron metallurgy was developed independently in sub-Saharan West Africa, separately from Eurasia and neighboring parts of North and Northeast Africa. Similarly, smelting in bloomery-type furnaces appear in the
Nok culture of central Nigeria by about 550 BC and possibly a few centuries earlier. Instances of
carbon steel based on complex preheating principles were found to be in production around the 1st century AD in northwest
Tanzania. ImageSize = width:800 height:65 PlotArea = width:720 height:40 left:65 bottom:20 AlignBars = justify Colors = id:time value:rgb(0.7,0.7,1) # id:period value:rgb(1,0.7,0.5) # id:age value:rgb(0.95,0.85,0.5) # id:era value:rgb(1,0.85,0.5) # id:eon value:rgb(1,0.85,0.7) # id:filler value:gray(0.8) # background bar id:black value:black Period = from:-2700 till:500 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:500 start:-2700 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:100 start:-2700 PlotData = align:center textcolor:black fontsize:8 mark:(line,black) width:15 shift:(0,-5) bar:N.Africa color:age from: -1070 till: -700 text:
Third Intermediate Period from: -700 till: 1 text:
Kingdom of Kush bar:N.Africa color:Filler from: 1 till: 500 text:
Aksumite Empire bar:Africa color:era from: -1000 till: 500 shift:(-50,5) text:
African Iron Age from: -2631 till: -500 shift:(-50,5) text:
Sub-Saharan Africa from: -1000 till: -500 text:
Nok from: -1000 till: 500 text:
Bantu expansion Dates are approximate • Prehistoric (or proto-historic) Iron Age Historic Iron Age == See also ==